Effects of Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Injury on Muscle Activity of Head, Neck and Trunk Muscles: A Cross-Sectional Evaluation (Physiology) (Clinical Report‪)‬

ABSTRACT: This study evaluated the that effects a pathology of the knee, due to an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, has on muscular activity of neck, head, and trunk muscles. Twenty-five (25) subjects (mean age 28 [+ or -] 9 years) with ACL injury of the left knee were compared with a control no-pathology group. Surface electromyography (sEMG) at mandibular rest position and maximal voluntary clenching (MVC) wasused to evaluate muscular activity of the areas: masseter, anterior temporalis, posterior cervicals, sternocleidomastoid (SCM), and upper and lower trapezius. The sEMG activity of each muscle, as well as the asymmetry index between the right and the left sides, were compared between the two groups. Subjects in the study group showed a significant increase in the asymmetry index of the sEMG activity of the anterior temporalis at mandibular rest position (p0.05). At rest, the areas of anterior temporalis and masseter in the control group showed a significantly lower sEMG activity compared with subjects in the study group, both in the right and the left sides (p0.05). The same was found for the sEMG activity of the areas of SCM and lower trapezius. At MVC, the right areas of anterior temporalis and masseter in the study subjects showed a significantly lower sEMG activity compared with the control group. The same was observed for the lower trapezius area, both in the right and the left sides. In general, ACL injury appears to provide a change in the sEMG activity of head, neck and trunk muscles. **********